Ancient

Mayans

Introduction

•The Maya developed an advanced civilization around 2600 B.C.in the Yucatan area in Mexico and Central America

•Accomplished mathematicians, astronomers, and invented an advanced form of writing.

Mayan Cities

• Center for rituals and religion• Pyramids such as “El Castillo” served as

ceremonial sites for priests.

Cities

Mayan Religious Beliefs

Polytheism = Belief in many Gods

Believed that Gods controlled everything Priests had great

influence because Mayans thought priests could talk to the Gods

Gods symbolized as animals: Rain God = snake, Sun God = Jaguar, Death God= bat

Food and animal sacrifices common; humans (such as defeated tribes) sometimes

Astronomy

• Masters of the Night Sky- known for their observatories

• Accurately charted the planets by using a forked stick like implement

• Created an accurate yearly calendar• Predicted eclipses of the sun

Religion and Education

Human Sacrifice and Bloodletting Ritual

Religion: Importance of Agriculture

• Mayan religion reflected the fundamental role of agriculture in their society

• Popol Vuh, was the Mayan creation myth that taught that the gods had created human beings out of maize and water

• Gods kept the world in order and maintained the agricultural cycle in exchange for honors and sacrifices

This is Chaac, the God of Rain

Religion: Bloodletting Rituals

• Mayans believed the shedding of human blood would prompt the gods to send rain to water the maize

• Bloodletting involved both war captives and Mayan royals

Mayan queen holds a bowl filled with strips of paper used to collect blood.

Religion: Bloodletting

• A popular bloodletting ritual was for a Mayan to pierce his own tongue and thread a thin rope through the hole, thus letting the blood run down the rope

Religion: The Ball Game

• Mayans inherited a ball game from the Olmecs that was an important part of Mayan political and religious festivals

• High-ranking captives were forced to play the game for their very lives– The losers became sacrificial victims and faced torture and

execution immediately following the match

• Object of the game was to propel an 8 inch ball of solid baked rubber through a ring or onto a marker without using your hands

Mayan Ball Court

Mayan calendars

The Maya developed a sophisticated calendar. The ritual calendar that developed in Mesoamerica used a count of 260 days. This calendar gave each day a name, much like our days of the week. There were 20 day names, each represented by a unique symbol. The days were numbered from 1 to 13. Since there are 20 day names, after the count of thirteen was reached, the next day was numbered 1 again. The 260-day or sacred count calendar was in use throughout Mesoamerica for centuries, probably before the beginning of writing.

Mayan numbers

The Mayans had a number system consisting of shells, dots, and lines.  You could write up to nineteen with just these symbols. The Maya were one of the only ancient civilizations that understood the concept of zero. This allowed them to write very large numbers

Maya

Mayas were skilled farmers, weavers, potters, and created elaborate buildings without the use of metals.

Investigate

Corn Beans Squash Avocado

Tomatoes Chili peppers Quetzal Honeybees

Pottery Writing Architecture Astronomy

Glyphs• Mayans created the most advanced pre-

colonial writing in the Western Hemisphere• Over 800 different images were used to record

their history

king sky house child

Mayas Today

• Mayas live in Mexico and Central American

• Speak Maya languages

• Observe some religious customs of their ancestors combined with Christianity

References• The Ancient Maya• http://www.digitalmeesh.com/maya/history.htm

• Civilization.ca-Mystery of the Maya http://www.civilization.ca/civil/maya/mmc01eng.html

• Ancient Mayan Civilization http://www.kidskonnect.com/AncientMayan/AncientMayanHome.html

• Traditions of the Sun http://www.traditionsofthesun.org/ViewerYucatan/

• Pyramid of El Castillo http://www.internet-atwork.com/hos_mcgrane/chichen/chichen_castle.html#